There are some big celebrities making it in the United States that one would never guess have Zimbabwean roots.
This is because of their prominence and dominance on the world stage.
Danai Gurira, Thandiwe Newton, Tinashe and Draze have all put their names on the global showbiz map.
Danai Gurira
Danai Jekesai Gurira is a Zimbabwean-American actress, playwright and activist born in Grinnel, Iowa State.
She is best known for her roles as Michonne on the AMC horror drama series The Walking Dead (2012–2020, 2022) and The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live (2024) and as Okoye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films, including Black Panther (2018) and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022).
Thandiwe Newton
The British born actress is known for her work in American movies by fanatics all over the world with her performances in movies like The Pursuit of Happyness (2006), Mission: Impossible II, Crash, Run Fatboy Run and All the Old Knives.
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Newton’s father, Nick Newton, is a laboratory technician and artist, while her mother, Nyasha, a Zimbabwean and a former healthcare worker.
Tinashe
Tinashe Jorgensen Kachingwe, known as Tinashe, is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. Her father is Zimbabwean born movie actor, Michael Kachingwe, with her mother being an white American woman.
She was born in Lexington, Kentucky. Her notable roles include a motion-capture performance in the animated film The Polar Express (2004), Robin Wheeler in the Cartoon Network television series Out of Jimmy's Head (2007–2008), and a recurring role in the CBS series Two and a Half Men (2008–2009).
From 2007 to 2011, she was a member of the girl group the Stunners.
She once gained some backlash from Zimbabweans when she said that she was not from Zimbabwe, but that it was only her father who was from the southern African country.
Draze
Draze is a Zimbabwean-American, born Abraham Dumisani Maraire Jr.
He was born in Seattle, Washington, United States.
Draze is the son of Zimbabwean traditional music icon Dumisani Maraire and Lora Sukutai Chiorah-Dye and the younger brother to Chiwoniso Maraire and Tendai Maraire.
He is well-known for his unique blending of traditional African sounds, marimba and mbira with hip-hop music.
He won an Emmy Award in 2022.
